Improvement in the seed-roller of a seed-planter



E. WIGKS. SEEDING MACHINE.

No. 7,227. Patented Mar. 26,1850.`

fig. |mmm mmmw im Aw v chine. Y ing-cylinder. Fig. 4 is a plan of the circular i UNITED STATES PATENT GEEIGE.

EDWARD WioKs, or BART TOWNSHIP, LANCASTER COUNTY, PA.

IMPROVEMENT IN THE SEED-ROLLER OF A SEED-PLANQI'ER.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 7,227, dated March 26, 1850.

plate, showing the circle of sections of. male screws for. Amatchingl with sections vof female screws on the slides that form the movable bottoms of the apertures in the periphery of the seeding-cylinder..' Fig. 5 isan elevation of one of the adjustable bearingplates. Fig. 6 is a vertical Section of the cylinder and plate; and Fig. 7 is a side view of the same, showing the scale and indicator.

Similar letters in the several figures refer to like parts. f l

The fra me A, cart-wheelsB B on the axle of the planting-cylinder D, hopper E, jointed beam F, hollow tooth ortubular drill H, conducting-spoutI,rocl;-shaftJ, lifting-arm K, and connecting-chains L, being made and arranged in the usual or most-approved manner, need not therefore be particularly-described.

The improvements that l haveniade relate to the following essential points: first, to apeculiar mode of constructing-'the seedingcylinder so that all the aperturesi'n its periphery can be enlarged or diminished'simultaneously by simply turning a plate which lies against the cud of the cylinder and is on the same axle 5 second, a novel mode of stopping and starting the seeding operation by moving the hopper to the right or to the left over the surface ofthe cylinder by the action of a'bent lever; third, a new mode ot' compensating for the wear of the convex surface of the planting-cylinder and the concave surface of the hopper by arrangingthe adjustable bearings ofthe hopper in such manner that the hopper can belowered vertically or moved horizontally forward or back or canted obliquely when4 req'uired with very little dilicultyfor the purpose ot' a, correct adjustmentto the cylinder by simply unscicwing or screwing certain nuts or hurrs which clamp said adjustable bearings or plates; fourth, in anovel mode ot" employing a springcatch attached to the sliding hopperby which the hopper can be engaged with and disengaged from oneof the adjustable bearings when the hopper is required to be moved to the right or to the left 5 tifth, Yin so constructing `and arranging a lever as to perform the several oiices of disengaging the spring-catch 'and moving the hopper, and also raising and suspending the tubular drills.

The planting or seeding cylinder D is ,made

. hollow, of any convenientsize, and is perforated around its periphery with radial openings M,

in which are placed slides N or blocks that close said openings when entirely extended,

and which gradually open and enlarge the said openings as the said slides are drawn in to ward the center by the circular plate 0, with section'sof'screws P, so as tobe adapted tothe planting ot' any required' quantity of seed to the acre, which will be ascertained from a scale, d, marked on the circumference of the cylinder, and an index or pointer,o, on the periphery ofthe plate. Each slide contains a section ot' a female screw, Q, into which matches a section of a male screw, l), formed on the inn/ er side of the turning-plate. This plate O gener? ally forms a continuation of the cylinder, its center being coincident. with that'of the cylin-. D and made to turn with the axle U ot' the cart-wheels B, which passes through the cylinder D. To move the radial slides from the center in order to diminish the size of the seedcups, the plate O illust be turned to the right or to the let't,acconding to the position or angle of the threads ot' tbe-screws. To produce' a contrary motion of the Lslides to increase their size, the plate O must be turned in a contrary direction. To hold the. slides N (which form the bottoms ofthe seed-cups) in a given position, the wheel O must be clamped to the ,cylinder D, and this is eii'ected by a thumb-screw,

i, nut j, and washer y, or other suitable nie-L chanical device.

The hopper E is made in the usual manner, except its bottom @,lwhich is inade'convex on the s'urface inside the hoppcr,having an opening.f, in the same, through which the seed do.

scends to the seed cups or cavities M in the peripheries of the cylinder,and which is opened or closed by means ot' a slide, lt, arranged and operated in the bottom ot' thc hopper.

To the bottom'of the hopper are secured two t parallel slides, S, of greater length than the` hopper. These slides move hack and forth in bearings ofthe hopper-slides Sfere made of-a. forni resembling thc letter U, and are securedy V*also provided with a third notch, rv, to admit the lever W', by which the spring V is disengaged from the plate T and the hopper EY moved in the required direction. The lastnamed notch, may he made 1u the spring or it may be formed on it by Ameans of two knobsV or cogs, b b, formed on its surface ata distance apart a little greater than' the diaineter of the lever to be inserted between them.

The lever lV, which is to perform the several offices of raising and lowering the tubular drill-tooth H, disengagingz,` thespring-catch V from the bearing-plates T, moving the hopper E to the right orI to the left over and against the surface of the planting-cylindervD, in order to make thehopper actas a valve forstopping and starting the planting of the seed, is made in the forni represented in Fig. 2. It is fixed to the shaft J, which serves' as its fnlerum, so

as to cause said shaft to turn on its axis alternately to the right and left.

The operation of this Seedingmachine is -souiewhat similar` to other seeding-machinesin use. For instance, the seed to be planted is placed in the hopper E, the slidelt drawn, and the horse o r horses attached to thefraine driven forward. The tubular drill H opens a furrow, into which the seed descends, passing first from the hopper into the cavities in the periphery of the cylinder, and carried round .by

-said cylinder and discharged into the spout L and conducted thence to 'thetubular tooth II, through which it passes into the furrowl The operation of stopping the planting by -the sliding of the hopper, so as to close the opening f in the hopper by the convex surface of the cylinder, is effected by bringing the lever W against the spring-catch V and bearing it toward the hopper, which disengages it from the plate T, then, with the samelever still in contact with one ot' knobs o r projections b on the spring V, the hopper is moved to the position required. The vsame lever W is used to 'raise the tubular drill from the ground by depressing its longer arm, and thus turning the rock-shaft J from which the lifting-arm K extends. The hollow tooth H is held in its raised position by bringngvthe bent lever under a pin, Y, inserted into the frame. The manner ot'increasing or diminishing the' sizes ofthe cells or cavities in the planting-cylimler having been described in givinga description,

need not berepeated.

Having described thenature of my invention and improvement and its several modes ofoperation, what I claim as my invention', and desire' to secure by Letters Patent., is-

The before-described mode of constructing the planting-cylinderD, by which the cavities or cells M in the periphery are enlarged or diminished simultaneously by simply turning the plate O or other similar device, having` its sections'P of male screws on its inner face and causing saidsections to act on all ot' the radial slides Q, forming the 'bottoms of the cavities at the same time, and holding them firmly in the required positions by the'thu'nib screw i, or other equivalent mechanical device, substantially as aforesaid, by which like results are produced.

In testimony whereofl have hereunto signed my name before two subscribing witnesses.

EDWARD wies-s.

Witnesses zV LUND WASHINGTON, WM. P. ELLIOT. 

